Protocol on Provisional Application of the Unified Patent Court Agreement
Protocol on Provisional Application of the Unified Patent Court Agreement
In December 2020, the Protocol on Provisional Application of the Unified Patent Court (UPC) Agreement was signed by the European Union (EU) member states that had ratified the UPC Agreement. This protocol provides a legal framework for the functioning of the UPC, which is a specialized court that will deal with disputes related to patents in Europe. The UPC will have jurisdiction over both traditional European patents and the new unitary patents that are expected to be available soon.
The UPC has been a long time in the making, with negotiations starting in 2011 and the UPC Agreement being signed in 2013. The UPC will have a central division in Paris, with other divisions located in Munich and London. The court will have the power to hear cases related to infringement and validity of patents, as well as issues related to supplementary protection certificates and European patents with unitary effect.
The Protocol on Provisional Application of the UPC Agreement sets out the rules for the operation of the court until it comes into full effect. The provisional application will allow the UPC to start functioning before all member states have ratified the UPC Agreement. This is significant because the UPC requires ratification from at least 13 EU member states, including France, Germany, and the UK.
The protocol provides rules related to the appointment of judges, the operation of the court, and the jurisdiction of the court. Importantly, it also establishes a provisional period of operation during which the court can hear cases related to traditional European patents but not unitary patents. This period will begin on the first day of the month after Germany and two other EU member states have ratified the UPC Agreement.
The provisional period will end once the UPC Agreement comes into full effect. At that point, the court will have jurisdiction over both traditional European patents and unitary patents. The expected date for the full implementation of the UPC is currently unclear due to the pending ratification of the agreement by some EU member states.
Overall, the Protocol on Provisional Application of the Unified Patent Court Agreement is an important step towards the establishment of the UPC. With the UPC in place, patent disputes in Europe will be dealt with in a more efficient and streamlined manner, which will benefit both inventors and businesses. The UPC will provide a specialized forum for resolving patent disputes that will be accessible to all parties, regardless of their location in the EU.